Science and the Bible: Goliath's home

Archaeologists Uncover Goliath's Hometown

Witnesses to the faith: India

Christians in India are under constant threat of attack, as this assault on St. Emmanuel Church shows.

Please pray for Christians in India.

Witnesses to the faith: Iraq

Iraq is a deadly place for Christians, as the kidnapping of Iraqi businessman Yonan Daniel Mammo demonstrates.

Please pray for Iraqi Christians.

Don't judge us; we'll judge you

This is an odd article:

Tebow's devotion to faith divides Broncos fans

Key quote:

It's Tebow's eagerness to share his Christian values and beliefs that really irks [Michelle Olson].

"That's why I hate him," she said.

The title of the article is what I found unusual. Ms. Olson's anti-Tebow comments are the only ones the author of the article saw fit to print (the rest of the people quoted were quite positive). A few of the remarks in the newspaper's comments section are nuclear-hot in their hatred of Tebow's Christian faith. One would this they were talking about Michael Vick or O.J. Simpson instead of someone who has never broken the law.

Tim Tebow's parents were missionaries. Tim and his mother participated in a highly successful ad run during this year's Super Bowl:



I suspect that at least part of Ms. Olson's wrath is because of this pro-life ad. One of her comments recorded in the article was, "It's my personal opinion that if you don't have a uterus, you don't have a right to express an opinion about abortion." Interesting. Does that mean that if you are not a perpetrator or victim of (say) child abuse you cannot express an opinion on the subject?

There is an irony in watch the world denounce Christianity as being "intolerant", yet remain oblivious to their own displays of intolerance against Christians like Tim Tebow. By all means hold Christians accountable when they do not live up to what they profess. But the world is also subject to the same treatment for failing to live up to its own standards. That is the problem with "judging" - it is a double-edged sword. Too many Christians and opponents of Christianity relish the role of Pharisee and have enjoyed the judging-someone-else part, but object when the tables are turned. The attitude of the world towards Christians seems to be Don't judge us; we'll judge you instead.

I have a problems with the modern-day use of the word "judge". Is speaking out against evil "judging"? No more than saying two plus two equals four. When Christians know about evil in their own ranks (such as criminal activity or false doctrines) they have a special duty to speak out. "Judge not, lest ye be judged" should never be used as some sort of theological Get Out of Jail Free card.

Perhaps this Bible verse sums up the situation best:

And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Mark 13:13 (NKJV)

Today's verse

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.

Matthew 7:24-7 (NIV)

Witness to the faith: Julea Ward

Julea Ward, a graduate student studying counseling at Eastern Michigan University, was dismissed from the program for refusing to renounce her Christian beliefs on homosexuality.

At public universities the US is slowly moving towards a religious litmus test for admission and graduation. Students like Julea who do not adhere to state-approved religious beliefs will be punished. It is ironic that many of the same individuls who denounce the tactics of Senator Joe McCarthy are either silent in cases like this, or actively support this type of persecution.

Please pray for Christians everywhere who are the victims of state-sponsored persecution.

Interview: Ayaan Hirsi Ali

This is an interesting interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali. But what I found particularly fascinating was her call for Christians to try to convert Muslims living in the West:

Next to every mosque, build a Christian centre, an enlightenment centre, a feminist centre. There are tons of websites, financed with Saudi money, promoting Wahabism. We need to set up our own websites—Christian, feminist, humanist—trying to target the same people, saying, we have an alternative moral framework to Islam. We have better ideas.

Hirsi Ali is a self-professed atheist, so it is odd that she would be calling for Christians to proselytize to Muslims. She believes that the West is at war with Islam, and that non-Muslims need to fight Islamic ideas with other ideas.

There is some truth to what she says. Contrary to what many multiculturalists would like to believe, Islam is a imperialistic religion that is radically intolerant of opposing points of view. Isolated cases aside, Muslims living in predominantly Christian nations do not face (even remotely) the same level of persecution and abuse that Christians face living in predominantly Muslim countries. Some sort of opposition can and should be mounted.

But converting Muslims to escape the excesses of the Islamic faith is a barren goal. Christians should proselytize to Muslims (and non-Muslims) because everyone need to hear the Gospel and decide for themselves about Jesus.

Witnesses to the faith: Indonesia

Muslim Protestors Surround Worshipers in Bekasi, Indonesia

Please pray for the Christians of Batak Christian Protestant Church.

Some changes

I have added labels for each post. This will help me when I need to refer to something I have written previously.

(UPDATE: 4:00PM) I have changed the title of this blog. The new title Musings of a Recovering Lutheran is a more accurate description of what this blog is all about.

Global South gaining in influence

A study done by Oxford Analytica shows that Christian leaders from Africa, Asia, and Latin America are gaining influence in Catholic and Protestant churches.

This should surprise no one, since churches from the Global South are on the front lines (literally) of the conflict between Christianity and other religions. In many parts of the world to be a Christian is to make yourself a target for persecution, torture and death. Contrast that situation with many Western denominations, which have become lazy and complacent in the freedoms unimaginable to many Christians worldwide. Some Western denominations like the ELCA and the Episcopal Church USA are essentially post-Christian, concerned primarily with secular political redemption rather than the Kingdom of God.

The news is not all good, however. Some Christian leaders from the Global South are deeply involved in the heresy of "liberation theology". For the most part, liberation theology is a thuggish variation of the social gospel that is still popular in dying mainline Protestant denominations. The difference between the social gospel and liberation theology is that the latter is unquestionably more bloodthirsty in persecuting "enemies of the people" than the former.

For better or worse, the center of gravity of Christianity seems to be shifting away from America and Europe and towards Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It is not out of the question that one day the Global South will be sending missionaries to the unbelieving West. Given the growing unbelief in many mainline Protestant denominations this will probably happen sooner rather than later.

Today's verse

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

Witness to the faith: Jennifer Keeton

Jennifer Keeton, a graduate student who has been studying for a master's degree in school counseling at Augusta State University, was ordered by the school to change her Christian beliefs concerning homosexuality or face dismissal.

Pray for Jennifer and other college students in the US who face persecution for their faith.

Update on Dr. Kenneth Howell

The University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana has relented and will allow Dr. Kenneth Howell to teach on Catholicism. Dr. Howell, a popular teacher, was fired for expressing the views of the Catholic Church in a class about Catholicism.

This case was truly bizarre. It made as much sense as firing a physics professor for talking about General Relativity, or a history professor for mentioning the Civil War. Likely the humiliating publicity caused the university to back down.

Make no mistake about it: at many public universities the long knives are out for Christians and any who would defend them. The princes of this world are jealous of their power.

Today's verse

He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.

Proverbs 25:28 (KJV)

The limits of social science

This article by Jim Manzi is only indirectly related to Christianity. But it is a sobering reminder of the limits of the social sciences.

It is good to remember that when sweeping programs that will modify human behavior and create some sort of "Great Society" are proposed. Too many theologians think that creating Heaven on Earth is something that God has outsourced to humanity.

Of course we are to heal the sick, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked. But we cannot create the Kingdom of God ourselves or usher it in by force. We can only proclaim its inevitable coming.

Today's verse

Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.

Proverbs 25:25 (NIV)

"How long, O' Lord....

...will this blog go on?"

This blog was meant to be an on-line diary in which I could express my grief and frustration with the apostasy of the ELCA. It was also a chance to write about spiritual issues that I found important and/or interesting.

But it will not go on forever. Like any diary, it will never be finished, only abandoned.

It is my prayer that other Lutherans who are distressed over the ELCA's destructive course and who have stumbled upon this blog will find comfort in the knowledge that they are not alone.

So how long will this blog go on?

It is clear that (barring complete black disaster) the ELCA prefers to glory in its error rather than be ashamed and repent. I and many others could write and plead and nag and beg forever, but until the leadership of the ELCA starts to feel shame and remorse they will not listen. So using this blog as a kind of conscience to prod the ELCA is not an option.

The answer is this: I will blog until I am tired of it, or until I see that it is causing more harm than good.

Two notes:

1. I do not have comments on this blog, and probably never will. Part of this is because I do not have time to properly moderate comments, but also because I have seen other blogs overrun with comments like "Why do you hate gays and lesbians so much?" or "Hate is not a family value" or other passive-aggressive nonsense. Gays and lesbians are like adulterers, alcoholics (I am one), drug addicts, prostitutes, tax collectors, the rich, the poor, the old, the young, Republicans and Democrats, men and women - sinners in need of a Savior, not magistrates empowered by secular politics or popular culture to judge God and run His Church for Him.



2. I am experimenting with the design of this blog, and have not found one that I like yet. So if things change suddenly and without warning, do not be surprised.

Pray for the whole Body of Christ. Pray for the leadership of the ELCA, that they repent. Pray for faithful Christians who have chosen to remain in the ELCA. Pray for faithful Christians who have chosen to leave the ELCA. Pray for the efforts to form a new confessional Lutheran denomination that will serve as a refuge for Christians fleeing the apostasy of the ELCA and its obsession with secular politics.

Atheists, agnostics, and blow-dryers

This is just plain weird:

Atheists conduct de-baptisms using blow-dryers.

I am a lapsed atheist, and in reading the above story I have come to realize just how far modern-day atheism has fallen.

Once upon a time atheism and agnosticism could boast of top-notch intellectuals in its midst like Thomas Edison, Sigmund Freud, Pierre Curie, Bertrand Russell, Friedrich August von Hayek, and Karl Popper. Now they are stuck with Edwin Kagin and his blow-dryer performing "de-baptisms".

There is no small amount of irony in watching an atheist - who supposedly does not believe in God and who abhors superstitious rituals - performing a superstitious ritual wearing a monk's robe trying to counteract the effects of another superstitious ritual done on behalf of a God he does not believe exists. If I were still an atheist I would suspect that Kagin (whose son is a Christian minister) is some sort of Christianist plant designed to make non-believers look like idiots.

There is an interesting list of non-believers here. I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the list (some of it appears to be wishful thinking), but it seems generally accurate. But if you look at the list, you will notice something curious. Atheism's "A-list" of top notch intellectuals decreases as it gets closer to our time, and is replaced by mostly artists and entertainers like Gene Roddenberry (the creator of Star Trek) and Barry White (a singer). The much vaunted intellectual superiority that non-believers are supposed to have compared to theists seems to be gone.

(Some may wonder why I did not include the famous author Richard Dawkins. The reason is simple: I have concluded that Dawkins is not an atheist, or even an agnostic. He quite clearly believes in God, and he hates Him with every particle of his being. No one would write book after book obsessing over something he claims is not real. Nazis may hate Jews, but we would never say that Nazis do not believe Jews exist. The same goes for Dawkins. In fact, sometimes I wonder if he ever thinks about anything other than God.)

Before I lost my faith in atheism I believed that the Universe could be explained in purely materialistic terms. It was reading C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters that awakened my intellect, and after reading Miracles I had lost my atheism for good. In other words, my spiritual journey has its genesis (no pun intended) in science.

At any rate, it is hard to believe that "de-baptisms" are going to catch on. Consider this quote from the article:

As Cambridge [Boxterman] completed her de-baptism, she expressed no qualms about how it might be perceived. "Sometimes you've got to have shock value," she said. "There's some times where you just have to shock people into getting attention and from there, they ask questions... And maybe they learn a bit."

Indeed, although they probably won't learn what Ms. Boxterman and Kagin are hoping for. The problems with shock jocks is that their shelf life tends to be very short. Given the undeniable hatred expressed towards Christians in many Muslim countries (which can lead to imprisonment, rape and murder), Kagin's blow-dryer shtick is about as edgy as a cotton ball.

In a popular culture that seems to be in a competition to blaspheme Jesus, Kagin does not strike me as a major contender. Nor do I believe that popular culture is a major threat to Christianity. Perhaps I am too optimistic, but I do not believe Hollywood does not have has the influence they would like to think they have. The real threat to Christianity does not come from those who are doing little more than scrawling dirty words on the bathroom wall and giggling (think Comedy Central).

If you want to know what I consider to be the real threats to Christianity, then here they are: complacency and hypocrisy by Christians; those claiming to be Christians who want to modify Christian doctrines to satisfy secular political or cultural groups (ex: the ELCA and gays/lesbians); and government and educational authorities who demand obedience to the State and the official gods of the State.

Today's verse

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

Stay or go?

Over at Cyberbrethren LCMS pastor Paul McCain has a post concerning the ELCA's move to place gay/lesbian clergy on its roster.

One of the comments on that post was from a Lutheran who was a member of a faithful confessional ELCA congregation. He was distressed at the thought of possibly having to leave when his pastor and congregation were still faithful to the Gospel, and I cannot say that I blame him.

But there are several problems for any faithful Christian who is contemplating staying in an ELCA congregation:

1. The ELCA is desperate to prevent a mass exodus of members and congregations. Any Christian who is faithful to the Gospel and stays in the ELCA will be cynically used by the ELCA's leadership as "proof" that what they did was not so bad. Be advised that if you stay in the ELCA your continued presence will be used to advance a lie.

2. Some faithful Christians are deeply distressed by the ELCA's apostasy, but feel that they should stay and continue to bear witness to the Truth. The problem with such witnessing is that likely it will be ineffective, and perhaps even counterproductive. It would like going to a bar on Saturday night to speak out against the horrors of alcoholism. In one sense a bar is the perfect location to do this, since the place is probably hip-deep in people who need to hear the message. But a bar is the wrong venue for such an undertaking, since peer pressure is very tough to overcome in a crowd. More likely is that you will be mocked and ridiculed (if anyone pays attention to you), and in the heat of the witnessing you will be provoked into doing something foolish that undermines your case.

Just as a drunk has to hit bottom before he will listen to a cure, the apostasy of the ELCA's has to produce disaster before the leadership will repent. Like the patrons of a bar the ELCA's leadership is drunk on their own arrogance. They are in no mood to listen to the party-poopers and squares who are led by the pesky carpenter from Nazareth. To the extent they will listen to you, their attitude will be, "We have the power and credentials, and you do not." Meanwhile, your presence will give them what they do not deserve: the illusion that the decision of last August was no cause for concern, or else you would have left.

3. There is a belief among some confessional Christians in the ELCA that whatever happens, their own congregation will be untouched. This is probably the most dangerous illusion of all. The ELCA controls the call process, and when your confessional Lutheran pastor leaves he or she can be replaced with someone more willing to parrot the ELCA's line. In terms of earthly power the ELCA's leadership holds all the cards, and can shape any congregation they choose. As tempting as it may be, the apostasy of the ELCA is not a problem that can be booted down the road in hopes that it will somehow go away. The evil that is now consuming the ELCA will reach the doorsteps of your church - and probably sooner than you think.

4. There is one more problem to consider. While you may be witnessing to the ELCA's leadership they will be witnessing to you on behalf of their new god of secular politics. There is the danger that peer pressure can bring you to reject the Gospel in favor of what the ELCA is now offering. Remember that the devil does the most damage when he can wear you down. In an ELCA increasingly empty of Christians you will find yourself more and more isolated and vulnerable to temptation. Believe it, brothers and sisters in Christ!

If you do decide to stay, surround yourself with other Christians and resist calls to "go along to get along". Looking the other way is an engraved invitation to disaster and the last thing you should do. If you choose to stay and continue the fight, make sure that you actually fight. And pray without ceasing! Remember the words of 1 Peter 5:8 : Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

These are my views. My wife and I left the ELCA because we did not want to lend any support to the ELCA's rejection of the Gospel. We now pray for repentance by the ELCA's leadership, and we also pray for any Christians still in the ELCA. We urge everyone else to do the same.

Bible study with your teen

Our son will be five years old on his next birthday, so it will be some time before we will need something like this. However, it has been my experience that children grow up much faster than we would like to believe.

One way to have your children take the Bible seriously is to show that you take it seriously, and are willing to share with them.

(Hat tip: Joanne at Blessed is She Who Believed.)

Reading List

Just completed:

e: The Story of a Number, by Eli Maor

In progress:

Book of Concordia, McCain, Paul T, General Editor.

On deck:

Four Colors Suffice, by Robin Wilson

Sharia and the US Constitution

An appellate court in New Jersey has overturned a lower court's decision in which a Muslim man charged with raping his wife was exempt on "cultural" grounds from state laws against sexual assault. For now, at least, the US Constitution trumps sharia.

One of the strangest aspects of 21st century Western society is the willingness of so many in its ruling class to entertain the notion of overturning many of its own laws in the name of "diversity". As I noted here and here, there is a growing tendency by the powerful and educated to flirt with returning society to more primitive (and barbaric) times.

I sincerely doubt that these are cases of sympathy with Islam, and that Comedy Central and the American Academy of Pediatrics are chock-full of fundamentalist Muslims or their sympathizers. Rather, these seem to be cases where a hatred of Christians and Jews overides long-held secular political philosophies. The attitude appears to be adolescent belief that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". Islam is seen as a rival of Christianity, and benefits accordingly.

One notion that can be put away is the oft-stated defense for such actions: diversity. It would be hard to find a more narrow-minded and isolated group of individuals than our ruling class in government, education, and the media. Contrast the near hysterical reaction by the ruling class when a Christian suggests that homosexuality is wrong, or that Jesus was a man, or that God's laws provide the basis for (and are superior to) secular laws with the near universal indifference to reports of a Muslim man raping his wife, or the rise of "honor" killings in the West, or the suggesting that mutilating a little girl's clitoris can be an accepted medical procedure in modern hospitals.

It would not be inaccurate to see this strange secular-Islam alliance as a kind of modern-day Hitler-Stalin pact. Modern secular progressivism and Islam are both fundamentally incompatable with democracy. Both have bloody and brutal histories which they hotly deny. Both seek to extinguish rivals by any means necessary. Both are inherently imperialistic, hostile to opposing points of view, and seek to dominate by brute force if necessary. And both are fairly backwards and reactionary (as can be seen with their rather blatent hostility towards women).

But both have fundamental differences that will one day break up this cozy alliance. Islam holds that there is a God, and his name is Allah. Secular progressives tend to view government as God. For that reason and many others I predict the two will not stay friends for long.

Update on Dr. Kenneth Howell

Alliance Defense Fund attorneys have sent a letter to the University of Illinois protesting the firing of Dr. Howell because of he religious beliefs.

There are some Christians who believe that "separation of church and state" means humbly accepting every decision handed down by governments. This is not true. For the time being, Christians still have civil liberties. It is no sin to protest an unjust decision by a university that has violated its own professed belief in freedom of speech.

Remember: the world will judge Christians by their own standards. So what is wrong with pointing out that the world cannot live up to its own standards? Firing Dr. Howell was the antithesis - not the affirmation - of what the secular world professes to believe. For Christians, turning the other cheek does not mean turn away from the truth.

Witnesses to the faith: Dearborn, MI

Christian missionaries Negeen Mayel, Nabeel Qureshi, Paul Rezkalla, and David Wood are facing charges for proselytizing at the at the Arab International Festival in Dearborn, Michigan. Dearborn is known for its large Muslim community.

Many Muslim countries have harsh laws against Christians engaging in "proselytizing". In some places such as Egypt merely trying to bring a Bible into the country is enough to land you in prison. Apparently the authorities in Dearborn have decided to immitate the spirit of these laws, if not the letter.

It should be noted that the secular media is often deeply hostile towards Christianity. Care should be taken when reading any news story involving Christians such as this one.

Witness to the faith: Ken Howell

Ken Howell, an adjunct professor at the University of Illinois who taught courses on Catholicism, was fired for stating that he believed that homosexuality is immoral. The charge that such beliefs constitute a "hate crime" is rapidly becoming the weapon of choice for the suppression of views and beliefs that happen to annoy the rich and powerful few.

The day is coming in the United States when disagreeing with state-approved religious beliefs (homosexuality, environmentalism, feminism, etc.) will be punishable by firing - or worse. More and more will suffer Ken Howell's fate.

Many American Christians have watched the persecution of Christians in Communist and Muslim countries and have breathed a prayer, "Thank God we have freedom here!" That freedom is slowly but inexorably coming to an end as the princes of this world flex their muscle and crack down on those they view as enemies.

It is safe to say that on the University of Illinois campus one could find a course or two in which tactics of the late Senator Joseph McCarthy are denounced as a dark and sinister threat to American civil liberties. Ironically, the University of Illinois has taken a page out of McCarthy's book in adopting its own blacklist and eliminating professors who will not swear an oath of fealty to the state religious belief of homosexuality.

UPDATE: (4:00 PM 7/10/10) The AP article states that Howell was recognized in 2008 and 2009 for being an outstanding teacher.

Then there is this:

Cary Nelson, president of the American Association of University Professors, said professors should be able to tell students their own views and even argue in favor of them, provided students can disagree without being penalized.

"It's part of intellectual life to advocate for points of view," said Nelson, an emeritus English professor at the University of Illinois. "Hopefully when they go out in the world, they can emulate that. They can argue a case, and do it in a well-informed and articulate way, and can make a more productive contribution to our democracy that way."

Shouldn't secular universities like the University of Illinios live up to their pledges to be places of free and open inquiry, free from discrimination and hostility towards the opinions of others?

Martyr: Son Jong Nam

Son Jong Nam was tortured to death for trying to spread the Gospel in North Korea.

Please pray for Christians in North Korea.

UPDATE: (12:30 PM 7/7/10) For some reason Yahoo! has this story on its sports page. Here is the picture:



It would be wrong to suggest that Yahoo! considers the killing of Christians to be some kind of sport (although I could be wrong). But it is clear they consider it no big deal, and perhaps worthy of a bit of mocking.

Just imagine the outrage if Yahoo! had published news about the death of Matthew Shepard on Yahoo Sports......

Reading List

Over at Cyberbretheren Rev. Paul McCain is challenging people to read the Book of Concordia this summer. I am teaching two 5-week remedial math classes, as well as taking an online class for my MS in Mathematics degree, so I doubt I will finish by the end of the summer. But I will complete it at some point.

Prayers

Tomorrow (Thursday, June 3) is the start of the Summer I session at the community college where I teach. Please say a prayer for students, faculty, and staff.

Witnesses to the Faith: Afghanistan

Two Christain aid groups suspended in Afghanistan.

Witnesses to the Faith: Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad

Do not take your Christian freedom as something that exists just like air. It certainly did not for these women.

Divorce rings?

Again, this is not a story from The Onion.

Divorce rings, eh? It would seem that there are some who believe that there is not enough pain and suffering already in divorce. It's instructive that the writer of the article linked above writes for a wedding planning website. Talk about working both sides of the street!

I would like to say that churches would never go for this sort of rubbish. But when denominations make themselves slaves to fashion and politics anything can happen. Bishop Margot Kaessmann of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hanover thinks that churches should have "religious separation ceremonies" for husbands and wives who want to get divorced. Now thanks to some enterprising capitalists the soon-to-be-split couple can exchange divorce rings.

Maybe they can get a trade-in on their wedding bands. And just as there is Carfax for used cars, maybe there can be Ringfax to see how much milage is on that wedding ring you are considering purchasing.

It's not surprising that at least one official in an American denomination thinks that "religious separation ceremonies" are a swell idea. Commenting on the desirability of such a service:

"This is important not only for confession but for a version of absolution too."

These are the words of the associate director of Christian Education, Children and Family Ministry of - wait for it - the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Somehow I don't think the idea of the ELCA having its very own version of Divorce Court is going to be of much spiritual help to the couple. Such a service would be grim indeed, and appealing only to voyeuristic sickos.

I have heard nothing recently about "religious separation ceremonies" in the ELCA. Possibly such an idea went over like a lead balloon even among the hipsters. But given the recent decision of the ELCA to cast out Jesus of Nazareth and install their own personal god who is more obedient to their wishes, perhaps the idea will now gain traction. With that pesky carpenter from Nazareth out of the way the ELCA is now finally free to take a walk on the wild side.

Maybe the moratorium on "religious separation ceremonies" will turn out to be an idea ahead of its time (this is the sort of rallying cry the ELCA's leadership cares about). The ELCA has certainly begun to flirt with turning back the clock to the good old paganism of a bygone millennium. Aside from embracing Nature religions (which often masquerade as "environmental concern") there is the creepy goddess worship of "Herchurch" which seems to be a fashionable combination of the spiritual and the political. There is also the worship of sex (a true "golden oldie" of paganism) which seems to be the foundation of the mad rush to bless gay/lesbian weddings in the ELCA.

If I were still a Lutheran, I don't know how I would react. Cry my eyes out? Or sell tickets and popcorn? Maybe I would do both. But at least I wouldn't flog divorce rings to the unhappy couple.

Who are the savages now?

Originally I wanted to give this post the title "Just in the nick of time?". But after a bit of reflection, I realized this is not the time for levity.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is one of the cruelest ways in which women are oppressed. Briefly put: a young girl's clitoris is mutilated or sliced off completely in order to honor tradition or religious belief. Not only does this deprive the girl of sexual pleasure when she becomes a woman, but is often done without any anesthetics or antibiotics.

A modern society that prides itself on gender equality would abhor such a practice, right? In fact, US federal law prohibits anything resembling FGM. You would also think modern physicians, free from primitive superstitions and religious practices, would also oppose FGM.

Well, maybe not all of them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a policy statement that opposes FGM - sort of. Read the relevant passage:

Most forms of FGC are decidedly harmful, and pediatricians should decline to perform them, even in the absence of any legal constraints. However, the ritual nick suggested by some pediatricians is not physically harmful and is much less extensive than routine newborn male genital cutting. There is reason to believe that offering such a compromise may build trust between hospitals and immigrant communities, save some girls from undergoing disfiguring and life-threatening procedures in their native countries, and play a role in the eventual eradication of FGC. It might be more effective if federal and state laws enabled pediatricians to reach out to families by offering a ritual nick as a possible compromise to avoid greater harm.

Notice what the AAP has done here. First, the substitution of the benign-sounding term Female Genital Cutting (FGC) for FGM. Almost like body-piercing, eh? Next come the it's-all-for-the-children shtick, which is the the new refuge of the scoundrel. Finally, the suggestion that allowing "FGC" will somehow result in its decrease.

It is a passionately held belief of our modern secular culture that Christians are fundamentalist misogynist savages who want to turn the clock back a millennium or two. But it was not the hated Christians who came up with the barbaric proposal to make the degradation of women an accepted medical practice.

In the "primitive" parts of the world unwanted infants are sometimes left in the wilderness to either die of expose or be eaten by wild animals. In the modern Western world we slice them up in the womb and call it abortion. Criminals sentenced to execution get painkillers to prevent their suffering. What steps are taken to prevent pain to the unborn fetus as it is ripped limb from limb?

Likewise, we have joined hands with "primitives" who want the aged and sick to die. Only we call it euthanasia, and in certain parts of the Western world you can make a living snuffing the unwanted. In America we watched a ghoul named Jack Kevorkian become a folk hero, and we can be thankful that Dr. Joseph Mengele never made it to the 21st century (otherwise Hollywood might be making hagiographic movies about him).

It is hard to look at the actions of the American Academy of Pediatrics and not come to the conclusion that something has gone terribly amiss in that organization. Does the AAP really believe that "FGC" will stop at just a little nick? It certainly didn't with abortion, which we were assured would decrease after legalization. One wonders when the AAP will address the issue of foot-binding, sati (wife burning), and child brides, and decide that multiculturalism trumps human rights in those cases as well.

The Gospel According to James Clerk Maxwell

And God said:



And there was light.

An interesting biography of Maxwell can be found here.

Witness to the Faith: Tiffany

Those who doubt the healing power of God's love should read this.

God is not a remote god judging right and wrong and dispensing punishment like a judge in a court of law. He is a God who stoops to conquer (as C.S. Lewis wrote), and in love will chase you to the very ends of the Earth.

Reading List

A Different Mirror, by Ronald Takaki

Interview with Sabatina James

Sabatina James is an ex-Muslim who converted to Christianity. She has received numerous death threats and lives in a secret location in Europe under police protection.

ELCA South Dakota Synod

ELCA South Dakota Synod warns 4 SD congregations and pastor that their dual membership with the LCMC is in violation of the ELCA constitution.

I have to be honest: I have some sympathy for the ELCA's position here. I don't know what the ELCA's constitution actually says, but the defense that "the ELCA has never enforced this before" does not strike me as very strong. The ELCA appears to be well within their rights to take this action.

There is also some quibbling over whether this action by the ELCA constitutes "censure" of Rev. Frezil Westerlund and the four congregations in question. Again, I have to be honest: it does not seem that way. Censure would involve some penalty or threat of penalty, and that does not quite seem to be the case here. I would be interested in seeing the actual ELCA statement to know for sure.

Regardless, this move by ELCA South Dakota Bishop David Zellmer was perhaps not the wisest that could have been made, since it conflicts with the ELCA's publicly expressed desire to honor the consciences of those who oppose the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly.

I believe that the ELCA has a decision to make. The ELCA has jettisoned the God of Abraham in favor of a new and shiny god of political activism. But this new god is a jealous god, and will not countenance heretics like Pastor Westerlund and the South Dakota congregations. The ELCA must choose between "dialog" or obedience to its new god. It cannot have both. This is the price of the 2009 General Assembly's actions, although the ELCA leadership may not wish to admit it.

My wife and I felt called to leave the ELCA. However, God may have issued a different call for Pastor Westerlund and the four congregations she serves. They need our prayers.

Comedy Central Update

Comedy Central has decided to create an animated show dedicated to nothing but mocking Jesus. No, this is not a story from The Onion.

Some things are beyond parody.

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania rejects ELCA's decision concerning homosexuality

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) has reiterated her opposition to same-sex marriage and stated that those who are in such unions are not welcome to work in the ELCT because such practice is incompatible with Biblical teaching.

Key quote:

The ELCT Executive Council meeting, held in Moshi on April 27 to 28 this year, received and approved "The Dodoma Statement" prepared in January this year by the ELCT Bishops' Council. The bishops met in Dodoma to discuss in details steps to take after the decision of some European and American churches to recognize same-sex marriages.

The Statement says: "Those in same sex marriages, and those who support the legitimacy of such marriage, shall not be invited to work in the ELCT. We further reject their influence in any form, as well as their money and their support."

This will be interesting if the ELCA tries to knowingly send homosexual couples to Tanzania as missionaries.

Do not underestimate the resolve of Tanzanian Christians on this issue. As economically poor as the ELCT is, they will not sell out. I know these Christians well, and they will stand strong.

In a way, this could be a blessing in disguise. Many Tanzanian Christians have been concerned about the growing Western influence on Tanzanian culture - especially sexual and family customs. Independence from American denominations may help Tanzanian churches avoid the spiritual poison that is destroying the ELCA.